Now And Forever
by Virande
Summary: Because he was Earth, and she was Heaven, and they were Equilibrium. NaruSaku oneshots for the 24 Hour Themes Community.
1. Catharsis

**Theme:** 02:00 Ridding partnerships or relationships of negativity  
**Title:** Catharsis  
**Fandom:** Naruto  
**Character/Pairing:** Haruno Sakura x Uzumaki Naruto  
**Category:** Romantic  
**Rating:** PG  
**Warnings:** Slight spoilers for Chapter 238 and above, very slight suggestive material  
**Disclaimer:** Naruto and all things related belong to Kishimoto. Not me.  
**Summary:** Sakura apologizes for all her failures, yet she does so with all the conviction of someone who believes she can make up for it.

* * *

Done for 24 Hour Themes LJ Community. Critique on these is _very much _encouraged, as this is a long term project that shouldn't be done in a mediocre fashion.

* * *

Sakura studied the keyhole. From what she could appreciate, the small apartment door was heavily locked. The windows she'd stopped to examine on her way weren't as soundly secured, but then again he had never been one to plan far ahead. 

He probably felt he owned nothing worth stealing. Or he'd forgotten to, which was just as likely.

With a simple unlock-seal, Sakura let herself in, not even attempting to flip the switch by the door (the power must have been cut months ago). Street lights would have to do, she reasoned, pulling the shutters open.

Oddly enough, the late night (early morning?) gloom opposed no resistance to her eyes. Paper-thin layers of dust, stale air, objects in slight disarray…much like a young child left his toys when he intended to return sooner than he actually did. Sliding a window open, so as not to be overwhelmed by the lack of proper oxygen, she headed into the humble bedroom, a nervous determination in her usually smooth stride, and sat primly on the bed.

_Hello, Naruto_…she thought the words, her voice firm and full of emotion in her head. Sakura willed them to project themselves into the room.

_I hope you don't mind it too much that I …break into your home while you're gone…but I -I had to. No. I wanted to. I have to get the words to you somehow._ A longing smile pulled her lips up. _Since…I can't reach out to you physically. You and Jiraiya-sama must have left Fire Country behind months ago._

_I don't want to beat about the bush…Naruto, I feel guilty. About all the times I wasn't there when I should have._

The words, she realized, became easier to bring up as the fluttery, scattered remorse she'd been holding focused into a tangible cause and simultaneously started melting away. _Not only as a team member, but as a friend. I never understood your pain well. Tsunade-shishou once remarked about how I have a fatal attraction towards the things that I believe need my fixing…_

A little spasm of laughter escaped slightly pressed lips. _Heh…she's partly right. I'd never be able to advance as a medic-nin if it weren't so. I need to be able to care about the people I heal, enough to try my best for them…_

_The thing is, I never did that for you, Naruto. A few dumb words of support and some cheering...hmph. Even Sasuke-kun_ (cramps of sadness reached her heart) and his insults _helped you out more. Then again, he didn't actually mean half of what he said…so I'm even further behind in that._

Sakura brushed a hand across the cold pillow beside her in a tender, impulsive caress. Her eyes nearly, only nearly, welled up at the feel of a few wiry hairs under her hands. She didn't need to glance down to confirm that they were indeed blond.

_I guess I used the fact that Sasuke-kun was the person I loved to justify the tunnel-vision. But it doesn't make you any less deserving. You were too patient with me…and you aren't even a patient person to begin with._ A single tear, a lone testimony of the anger at herself, escaped her eye. _I was useless and more uncaring than I let myself notice. And that's why I came here in the first place, you know? I'm so tired of lugging regrets all over the place._

"Because that's what useless little girls who can only cry and lament over hurt teammates do…" She whispered in realization. Suddenly aware of the emotional brink (regression, perhaps?) she was driving herself into, Sakura took in a slow breath. She let it out gradually, and repeated the exercise until the emotions had strayed back into her control radius.

What would he have said if he could see her?

_Ah, Naruto...if you were still here, you'd probably fall over yourself apologizing and be frustrated for making "Sakura-chan" sad, wouldn't you? I'll say it again…you've been too lenient with me._

At this thought, she brought her head down on the pillow, closing her eyes. _You idiot…for once, I should be the one doing exactly that. I promised you we'd be dragging Sasuke-kun back together…and we'll do just that. As true friends. Not because I owe it to you, but because I truly want to._

"I came", her words were now truly spoken into the room "to leave my apology here…so it stays with all the dust, the negativity and the old regrets we'll be cleaning up together when you come home."

She closed her eyes and brought her legs onto the bed, pulling off the boots she'd left on until then (for the sake of keeping her feet from the dust on the floor) and dropping them back down carefully.

"Maybe I got so used to your worship that I just assume you accept the apology…but that's not all I have. I promised you far more. Consider this the first and last quota of all the care I owe you. The rest will be a freely given gift."

"Well…that feels better," she sighed, eyes closed, slipping her hands under the pillow, "You better know what a quota is, stupid blond, because I'm not going to repeat myself. This is probably the best un-cheesy speech I've ever said." She smiled at a mental image of said blonde, scratching his head in confusion.

Looking over the bedside table, her eyes lingered on an oddly quiet alarm clock. It seemed to have stopped at 2:30, a few minutes earlier than the actual hour (she supposed it was about 2:45). She really should be heading back to her own flat now for more sleep.

As she moved, attempting to gather the will to get up, she turned to lie on her side, her nose catching a faint scent as she did. A whiff of something was on the pillow: sweat, an earthy musk, what had been the pungent smell of a too-strong shampoo…

Undeniably, the smell of Naruto.

Every time something reminded her of the missing Uchiha, her heart would device a new discomfort. Despite her affection for the lost teammate and the resolve, nearly fraternal in the face of the dying crush, to restore him to Konoha, Sakura couldn't help but experience hurt, resentment, and sometimes even hatred for the way he'd defected. The new unbalance he'd disturbed their shaken worlds with.

But a reminder of her idiotic bombshell…though it brought on nostalgia, and enough guilt to force her into apologizing to an empty home too, it always faded into memories of the grime-eating grin, the absurdly big smile…she'd get the tiniest urge to go out after him, track him down and chain herself to his side, if only for the fact that no matter what, he'd be there, smile in place.

The smell, the scant hours of sleep she'd had previously and the relief of somehow having made right were lulling her to sleep. Sakura entertained the notion of getting up and leaving, but, curiously enough, gave it up in favor of the musty smelling apartment, with its bed worn soft and its Naruto-scented pillow barely cushioning her head.

_Maybe_, she thought irrationally, _a remnant of his chakra is here to comfort me_. As an even smaller bit of it now traveled on the wind, back to its owner's body, carrying a small bit of her sentiment to him. She smiled one last smile of longing, one that transcended vague nostalgia of times gone by.

Her only dreams that morning resembled a laughing, bouncing orange blob that always stayed on the edge of her vision. At some point, it developed blue eyes and uneven, coarse blond hair- and clever, brazen lips, but she only noticed those when they were already somewhere above her jugular, teasing her neck for a few blissful moments. Then he smiled teasingly and dodged away, instants before her fist reached his face and caused a fatality.

_"Awww, but Sakura-chan, didn't you want to know if I'd accepted the apology?"_


	2. Pervade

**Theme:** 23:00 Coping with drastic change in a positive manner  
**Title:** Pervade  
**Fandom:** Naruto  
**Character/Pairing:** Haruno Sakura x Uzumaki Naruto  
**Category:** Romantic  
**Rating:** PG-13  
**Warnings:** Post-manga, somewhat AU. Character death  
**Disclaimer:** Naruto and all things related belong to Kishimoto. Not me.  
**Summary:** What will they do to fill this abyss?

* * *

"It's probably been four hours by now…" 

"That's _certainly_ a pretty bad omen."

Pale, overwrought faces seemed to tense even more. Silence closed in around them so heavily it defied metaphoric comparison.

The shinobi who didn't ultimately lose their faith in the Great Powers Above eventually became superstitious, if only to reaffirm their grip on life, and thus the small display of weakness was treated comprehensively.

More silence…

Idle whistling suddenly filled the waiting room.

"I don't think I have to remind you why you shouldn't whistle, _Shikamaru._"

"…if there's any bad luck left to be attracted, believe me, it won't be striking out here." He responded wearily, making Ino's glare all but poisonous. Shikamaru knew that, had a certain someone not been present, she'd probably agree to his remark, but he stopped whistling all the same.

He glanced around at the dismal faces, lingering on one Uzumaki Naruto. A meaningful glance at the operating room door, then back to the only blond who wasn't currently glowering at him…

_I don't think even your type of faith will get __him__ through this one._

* * *

Naruto didn't have to look at the clock to know how late it was. The now much-hated contraption's ticking was drilled into his skull, into his mind. He'd never been a genius, but with the clock as his only distraction, he'd somehow kept track of the time. 

11 something PM.

Twelve hours since Team Hebi had been captured, roaming not a kilometer away from the remains of the (now for the second time) demised Orochimaru.

Eleven and a half since Akatsuki's last surviving member went down at the hands of an infuriated Naruto.

Eight since Uchiha Sasuke had presented the first symptoms of an unknown condition, since he'd been rushed through those doors.

And five from the last time they'd been given an update. A horribly dismal one at that:

_By the looks of it, he's been tampering with the Curse seal. Not very professionally though… it's been altered to mess with the flow of chakra and respond to emotional stimuli with a faster flow instead of a faster production…_

_He was able to enter a powerful berserk state…_

_I can't quite believe it myself, but it appears Sasuke was attempting to create an artificial Jinchuuriki condition… he was trying to somehow duplicate the effects Kyuubi has on your body, Naruto._

_He managed, to some degree, but Orochimaru…he knew, somehow. Any drastic changes to the seal gradually hastened chakra flow. It reached speeds the body shouldn't have to adjust to, but like I said before, gradually, so the user wouldn't notice. Sasuke's tampering only made it worse._

_It was a built in malfunction device, a self-destruct button, simply put. And Sasuke activated it…  
_  
His attempt to cancel the seal's negative consequences by killing Orochimaru had no effect. The last Uchiha's organs were now too tired to stand normal functioning, let alone chakra-enhanced healing.

Naruto barely registered when Ino and Shikamaru, along with most of his entourage, excused themselves and slowly filtered out. Even if he'd been in need of company, the only one in some position to stay was him.

ANBU was having a field day like nobody had seen since the Great Shinobi Wars. An entire village of missing-nin, some of which had to be eliminated on sight, and some others who had to be immobilized and taken in for questioning was a cleansing task not easily taken care of.

Additionally, with the Hokage struggling to save the last of the Uchihas and despite Shizune's efforts, the village was in a state of vulnerable disorder. Guard shifts had to be filled, missions had to be handled, and patients had to be tended to.

Perhaps the only task running fairly smoothly was the latter: the other best medic-nin of Konoha had attached herself to her shishou's side, and up until that moment refused to leave. By her reasoning, her presence made most of the others' redundant enough to respond to the crisis.

The door was moving. Naruto looked up from a staring contest with the floor.

_Sakura-chan__…no matter what happens, I'm waiting for you here as well._

But for once Naruto's unyielding faith, Sakura's clever hands, and Tsunade's years of experience were found wanting.

* * *

Loss was an emotion Haruno Sakura knew well. It was her Achilles' heel, and she feared it greatly. But she wasn't the little girl with too long hair and weak arms anymore: she knew better than to break down uselessly.

_That's the last thing I need right now.  
The last thing anybody needs._

Standing in the most brutal of rainstorms with Tsunade and what remained of Team 7 seemed quite a bit like the end of the world. No attempts to comfort were made, no condolences given: the Godaime simply sent Sakura and Naruto home (Kakashi refused to turn in) with a gentle reminder to take it easy for a while.

All the while with a sense of incompletion widening the gap they'd expected to fill.

"Naruto…?"

Fractured blue eyes, rimmed with black, met hers. "We did it, didn't we? We brought him back…" _You foolish, foolish little boy, don't look like you've failed.__You didn't break your promise. He died here. He didn't die a traitor. You did it. We did it._

_We're just not used to getting just half of a happy ending._

"We sure did." Empty, heart-ached smile. A Naruto without joy was a Naruto in pieces: Sakura knew now that she wouldn't be able to let him walk away.

They were a family missing a brother, one that had left a wound that had to be pressed shut before it closed.

Impulsively, her hand shot out to lace through his. His answer came in a tender squeeze

"Stop looking like a kicked puppy already…" _Smile for him. Smile for him like he's always done for you.  
_  
Sakura had learned the hard way that life involved getting oneself back together quite a number of times. She wasn't as fast as Naruto. But she'd do it: she'd build as fast as she could and as efficiently as she could. Because she needed to, and he needed her just as much. _I'm right here. Even if it feels like we went and ruined it all, I won't be anywhere but right here._

His eyes sought hers now. If there was anybody good at piecing themselves together, that was him. Not immediately this time, not as hopefully this time, but he'd do it. And he'd put in thrice the effort for her._ I'm here too. We're not whole anymore, and I don't know if we ever will…but I'm here._

Her hands traveled to his shoulders. _They won't be taking my idiot without a fight._

_**We're not alone.**__** At the very least we're not alone.**_

With the world a mess of gray, cold water, not unlike tears, they held on to one another. And when lifeline hold turned to embrace, and embrace into a forceful, rain-bitten kiss, one for the sake of reminding one that the other was still there, they both managed to put the first few pieces back into the right place.

And though it didn't really seem to make a difference at the moment, the chasm left by the dark-haired boy with the blood-red eyes was just a little less empty.

* * *

_Author's Note: In Japan, whistling a__t night was said to be bad luck, as it attracted snakes. _


	3. Tasseomancy

**Theme:** 05:00 [Encouraging growth of the psychic self.  
**Title:** Tasseomancy  
**Fandom:** Naruto  
**Character/Pairing:** Haruno Sakura x Uzumaki Naruto  
**Category:** Romantic  
**Rating:** PG  
**Warnings:** Spoilers for Wave Country Arc. Exactly one swear word.  
**Disclaimer:** Naruto and all things related belong to Kishimoto. Not me.  
**Summary:** A sleep-deprived Sakura attempts to read her fortune, with Naruto hovering about the edges of her vision...and her mind.

* * *

"Hey Sakura-chan, what are you doing?"

The girl in question nearly let go of the pristine white teacup she'd been unwrapping. The pouch and scroll on her lap weren't as lucky.

"Ugh, Naruto you loud-mouthed_ dunce,_ don't do that! Don't you see this is fragile?" she brandished said cup in his face for effect, before realizing what she was doing and clutching it to her chest protectively. "Just go back to sleep, alright? The last watch is mine, and it ends in an hour."

Wave Country was about a day and a half away from Konoha (two if the company was particularly slow), and Kakashi-sensei had taken the opportunity to educate his students in the art of "resilience to exhaustion". This didn't really serve a vital purpose now that Tazuna wasn't with them, but nobody had proper arguments against it (or at least none that Kakashi-sensei cared to listen to).

Staying up for four hours with nothing to do other than watch three inactive lumps (even Sasuke's sleeping face had lost it's appeal after the second hour), Sakura figured she had every right to entertain herself a little. And she'd bee looking for the right moment to do this…

Until the unrelenting ball of liveliness and stamina that was Naruto decided he'd had enough sleep.

Naruto held up his hands in a gesture of submission. "Sorry, Sorry." Then he smiled at her brightly "strong ninja like me don't need as much sleep as the weaker kinds." He threw Sasuke a meaningful glance.

"Uhuh…" Sakura ignored him and went on with her business.

"Are you trying out a new tea mix or something?"

"No…" She retrieved a battered kettle from the fire. _The jasmine should be done simmering by now._

"So what's all this for? Are you having a tea party on your own? 'Cause I can join you if you like-"

"_No. _"

She deftly poured boiling tea into the teacup, growing exasperated.

"C'mon, nobody likes eating-er, drinking alone." And he launched into a vaguely entertaining account of his visits to Ichiraku with Iruka-sensei, and how ramen usually tasted better when it was the two of them.

Sakura opened the scroll to his scrutiny. "Tasseomancy." _See? Nothing for you to see here…goooo tooo beeed…sleeeeep._

"Oh, right." His utterly pleased expression told her he had no idea what she'd meant.

With a sigh, she elaborated "It's a method of fortune-telling by interpreting the shapes made by tealeaves after tea has been drunk. And this," she pointed to the scroll "is the symbol index."

Naruto let forth a small burst of laughter "You believe in that kind of junk, Sakura-chan?"

* * *

One vicious punch later, Naruto decided she probably did. He also made a mental note of not questioning Sakura's preferences in the future. Not that he usually did, but tarot cards and all related subjects were too high on his "Ridiculous Stuff I'll Never Try" list to stop the comment from slipping.

"Ugh, Sakura-chan…" he rubbed at the new sore spot on his head.

"If you can't appreciate it, go back to sleep." She'd need silence and a blank mind for the first step, and she highly doubted she'd get anywhere with Naruto flitting around like an overgrown, noisy orange fly. A few more minutes of steeping…

"But I can't. I'm already wide a…" he yawned deeply "Wake. Well, that and I want to be on my guard in case we're attacked again. I mean, that first guy popped up from a puddle and -"

"I need silence for this. Complete silence."

"I can be quiet."

"…"

"Really, Sakura-chan. I promise. You'll even forget I'm here!" He crossed his legs and arms, shutting his mouth firmly. Sakura glanced at him skeptically.

Naruto held his posture for ten seconds. Exactly ten. And the he apparently couldn't stop his foot from twitching.

In spite of herself, a smile quirked her lips.

Naruto simply _couldn't_ stop moving. But he hadn't actually made a sound yet.

_He seems to be serious about it_

Sakura closed her eyes and lifted the cup to her lips, sipping quietly and dismissing the idle thoughts one by one, concentrating on the taste of the tea. Her mind complied rather easily. The issue she'd previously chosen to consult her tea about was then called to mind.

_Show me where I'm going._

Sasuke had been left out of this consultation on purpose. After all, true love _always_ won.

She drank until only the very base contained liquid. Tipping it over, she disposed of the few remaining drops and proceeded to examine her cup.

_The first signs are…  
Comb. (Care for personal appearance)  
Dashes and dots_ (_Small trips or bursts that cause a waste of time)._

These first ones represented her or her traits…so they either meant she was taking too much care for her appearance, or taking care of it as she currently did was a waste of time.

_On the Rim…  
Wings. (Allowing oneself to progress)  
Fence. (Temporary and self-imposed barriers)  
Mountain. (A difficult, yet achievable goal)_

This was her near future. She had a goal, certainly…but the other two signs…

_On the Inner part…_

_Wolf. (Challenge or Betrayal)  
Broken Chain. (Disorder, disruption)_

_Bush…leafless bush…branches (choices)._

She was beginning to hope divination was as unreliable as Naruto put it.

_Dead__Center…  
_

_Needle (painful rebuilding)__  
Necklace (stability, within herself or in a personal relationship)  
Sun (a new beginning)_

So things would look up…

_  
Arrow__ (vertical upward meant good direction or 'yes' pointing to…a swirl- thing?_

She quickly memorized the swirl and consulted the scroll. "Whirlwind…Prepare for turbulent weather." Turbulent, as in exciting? So she was supposed to take the road Whirlwind...whirlpool…

There was an implication here she didn't want to think through. Though, if she held it sideways and squinted, the arrow looked like a horse's head…

Which stood for "lover".

However she looked at it, this tumultuous person/thing/event seemed pretty intent on making itself a part of the reading.

"So, what did the almighty cup tell you?" Naruto, she realized, had kept to his word- she'd forgotten about him to the point of jolting for the second time that morning upon hearing his voice. She stared at him pointedly.

"You promised you'd be quiet."

"But you looked like you were finished." He blushed a little under her eyes. And she was done. It would be unfair, for once berate him.

_Well…__he did behave, might as well let him do something useful…_

"Hey Naruto..." His smile fixed onto her face a little more firmly. "What does this thing look like to you?" She pointed to the arrow-horse-thing in the center "I mean…if you could put a shape together with those bits there…" Naruto crawled (a bit too eagerly for her liking) to her side, peering into the cup to the place she'd indicated.

Scraggly blond hair brushed against her cheek. It was surprisingly soft. And it didn't stink of old socks like she expected it to (though it did carry a faint smell of natural hair oils).

"It looks…kinda like lightning." That stood for unforeseen changes.

"Could be..." She rose, Naruto's hair tickling her cheek as she brushed past it on her way up.

The lack of dark, tall and handsome in the reading ruffled her feather ever so slightly.

But it really wasn't anything. What she didn't like, she would change, and that was that. Hadn't she gotten out from under Ino's shadow? Didn't she graduate with the best written exam scores at the Academy?

* * *

She lay on her sleeping bag, oscillating between consciousness and oblivion. There was still an hour or so for her to rest. Which could be rephrased into "to hell with the watch": If there were murderous shinobi somewhere nearby, they sure were taking their time in leaping out to kill them all. 

And Kakashi-sensei was asleep. Genuinely asleep. She could make out the erratic pupil movement beneath his eyelid. If there were so much as a vaguely malicious squirrel within two kilometers, he'd be anything but dreaming pleasantly.

The lump to her right moved. Again.

"Good omens."

"Huh?" Just as she'd supposed, Naruto was still awake. He'd been shifting too deliberately for a resting person.

"You asked me about the reading. I got pretty good omens."

"That's great." She heard the smile in his voice. "So?"

"'So' what?"

"Nothing special to cheer about?"

"Naruto…" He was getting inquisitive, and she'd discovered that inquisitive little boys weren't all that easy to cope with at five in the morning.

"Nothing about…say, a guy?" Uzumaki Naruto, she decided, had the worst of all the fake nonchalant tones she'd ever been subject to.

"Hmph. Something about having to like turbulent weather…" Sakura pressed her forehead into the sleeping bag. Of course, she realized the implication. But for the sake of sanity, she was **not** going to dwell on it.

* * *

**A/N:** According to a few webpages I looked it up on, "Naruto" can be taken as meaning "whirlpool". Or swirl-thing, if you're a sleep-deprived Sakura and would rather lie to yourself than to cope with the fact that your personal annoyance found a place in your teacup, and your crush didn't. 


	4. The Dreamscape

**Theme:** 24:00 [Writer's Choice  
**Title:** The Dreamscape  
**Fandom:** Naruto  
**Character/Pairing:** Haruno Sakura x Uzumaki Naruto  
**Category:** Romantic  
**Rating:** PG  
**Warnings:** Some angst, mention of blood.  
**Disclaimer:** Naruto and all things related belong to Kishimoto. Not me.  
**Summary:** In the thin border between reality and dreams, on the night when they need it the most, they can meet.

* * *

**I. ****Rasengan**

_A breath of life, exchanged for a wind of death)_

That night, he thinks about her.

The moon is high ("Twelve thirty", Jiraiya comments usefully), unfriendly, reminding him of a primal fear (almost like that of a child confronting a weapon, or perhaps a hunted animal escaping the hounds) that bounds around inside him nervously. He can almost see his chakra drained from his rapidly weakening body, traveling towards hands made slick with blood and perspiration. Wounds, gaping open like greedy mouths, drying into a stiff purple before his very eyes, eyes made red from the sweat that slides into them with every abrupt movement.

Tonight it is the 'good exhaustion', as the Toad Hermit calls it, because although the skin of his palms is flaking off, his body beginning to shudder from the chills associated to low chakra levels, the Red Chakra is fast asleep.

He can see, as if in a mirror, the ragged boy in the broken headband as he kneels, breathless, to press his raw hands together in an attempt to dispel some of the painful spasms his debilitating, unnatural wounds inflict. His hair is wilder, his eyes dim. Even this body, this prison of flesh can tire, and the limit is nearing.

In a gesture of stoicism and stupidity he rises, rubbing his hands together (sometimes the burn of friction distracts him from the pain). He thinks of green eyes and soft hands he'd be afraid to touch with his bloodied, eroded ones, of petal pink hair washed silver in the uncaring moonlight. He can see the things he associates with her (red cloth, flowers, a night in a forest where death crouches around the next corner, another one besides a fire, tealeaves and hopes cupped in her hands), and try as it might the frigid winds cannot blow them away.

He tips his head upward, and for a moment believes he hears her.

The hitai-ate's cloth gives in and tears off, plaque hitting the ground with a dry thump.

* * *

**II. ****Mystic Palm**  
_(the healing hand has curled into a fist)_

That night, she called to him

The skies of Konoha are thickly veiled, the clouds so solid they bring her a memory of bandages wrapped tight, and yet unable to contain the rivers of blood. If she could reach out and touch, would their most, cushioned feel be that much different (even her questions begin to grow confident).

The gashes are growing numb with each blow, a response to the repeated abuse she is putting her arms through. The cold is pushing her towards despair, as is the distance between the nearest burst of chakra, her muscles pulsing more distractingly with each passing minute, as she contemplates the possibility of Tsunade having put the name of "endurance test" on what was truly a reminder of her limits.

She is equally afraid and disappointed at the full extent of her capacity. The amount of chakra her body can store feels insignificant as the nth blow depletes it all over again. The skin is black and blue, torn, oddly punctured, small bits of dead skin falling off like blackened leaves with every collision against the rock.

It stands unsaid that she could have left hours ago, leaving the bloodied stone door as proof of her dedication: her body is not keeping up with her will.

As she withdraws dented knuckles, pride and a necessity to remain conscious warning her not to attempt to heal, a mess of bruises, grime and sweat, she can see him. She can see him, defiant little face reflected on a blade that towered over their heads. She can feel it, a faith that could solidify before his heart to deflect a kunai, a sword, a word with a sharp edge that was sent sailing through the air before it could be thought better of. She straightens her back, regaining lost balance before the rock is assailed, ailing body and incandescent will agreeing for once.

His name escapes her lips, a war cry, a prayer, she isn't sure.

Shards of stone catch on the hitai-ate, lengthening the tears until it is pulled apart.

* * *

**III. Poison Extraction**  
_(There is a toxin in their souls, and it hurts a little less on nights like these)_

There are vast expanses of earth between them. Letters are time-consuming and beyond the budget. Messenger birds are targets of war. They cannot sense each other, not their mind or their chakra.

But they are under the same sky. And for a moment the can stretch across the miles of the dreamscape they share, and their hands touch.


	5. Refracted Light

**Theme:**20:00 [Leadership, command and guidance.**  
Title: **Refracted Light  
**Fandom:** Naruto  
**Character/Pairing: **Haruno Sakura x Uzumaki Naruto  
**Category:** Romantic  
**Rating:** G  
**Warnings:** Post Wave Country, a few implied spoilers. Ties in slightly with "Tasseomancy", so reading of this is recommended  
**Disclaimer:** Naruto and all things related belong to Kishimoto. Not me.  
**Summary:** Sakura is further pestered by her rationalizations concerning the one boy she doesn't ever want to like.

* * *

Heavy snow was a fairly unusual event in Konoha, and the preparation for this particular scouting assignment (into the mountain range that bordered had therefore been more intense that the scope of the mission would have required, but it had done little to quell Naruto's childish excitement with it. 

"Naruto, stop being such an idiot and get back in here!" The yell drifted out, unanswered into the night. The snow fell outside their makeshift refuge and it was beginning to alter Sakura's nerves that Naruto insisted on frolicking amidst it.

It had been almost amusing at the beginning. Though Sakura personally hated snow, Naruto's antics had made the trip more tolerable, giving her somebody to vent her frustrations on whenever the cold thoroughly upset her. However, come dusk, Naruto had side-stepped Sasuke's covert remarks on immaturity and even Kakashi's orders to quit wasting energy on such a thing in favor of running off somewhere into the white landscape.

The area was quite safe, nestled into the mountain range towards the west of Fire country. It was within Konoha's jurisdiction, and had been a randomly used safe-zone during the Third War. Now that Sandaime was considering its use once again, he'd requested that a scanning be made of the area. Nothing overtly impressive, but it was their most important mission up until the moment (not counting escorting Tazuna) and should be treated with a little respect.

Which was why she'd decided to take matters into her own hands and bring the boy back by his hair if she needed to. Draping the winter cloak tighter about her shoulders, she ventured out into the snow.

It was dark as pitch outside, the biting cold only somewhat muted by the cloak. The idea that someone might _like_ to stand these conditions, and for over five hours no less, was beyond her understanding. Really, that boy had earned himself a serious ear-pulling. Glancing this way and that, she caught a glimpse of something brightly colored (darkened by the night) somewhere further ahead.

_When in doubt, follow anything resembling a neon orange lump in sight._

* * *

Naruto was sitting behind a small hill of snow, teeth chattering and skin pale. His face was contorted into the grimace of the ill as he looked into the sky in some semblance of determination. Catching sight of her, he managed a smile. 

"H-h-hey, Sak-k-kura-chan." He waved the hand that wasn't wrapped around himself stiffly in greeting. She frowned.

"And you're sitting out here freezing because…?"

"Th-th-the sk-ky…I-I-Iruka-sensei t-told me it…" And that was all he managed before a particularly chilly breeze did him in. He fell face-first into the snow.

Sakura sighed, pondering on her course of action (he was obviously in the beginning stage of something dangerous, but could she endure his chattering once he revived?). It was just like Naruto to fall victim to hypothermia in this kind of juvenile circumstances.

Deciding that lying unconscious in the snow was a bit too harsh a penalty for his brand of stupidity, she rolled him onto his back with a shove of her foot and, retrieving a small bottle from the folds of her dress, proceeded to pry his blue lips open and dump some of the liquid into his mouth. The boy started to his feet a few second later, sputtering as he went.

"What is that stuff?" He choked out, face flushing slightly.

"It's a serum that speeds up metabolism for a few minutes, just long enough to react against hypothermia."

"Hypo..?"

"Never mind, it's not good and that's all you need to know. Using too much of it is dangerous," she got to her feet and put the bottle back "so lets get moving. It's probably past eight and even idiots know they're not supposed to play around in freezing temperatures all night!"

She began making her way back to the shelter, Naruto following sheepishly. "Aw, but Sakura-chan, I was keeping a look-out!" she turned, presenting him with an incredulous glare. _Suuure…_

"Really, I was! This is the first time we've ever been out in this kind of territory, right? So I went to Iruka-sensei's yesterday, and they've sent him to snowy places loads of times! And so I asked him for pointers, like what places to avoid and what things to look out for…and he told me that getting hit by snow-storms was the worst thing that could happen on a mission, and that you could tell one was coming because the sky got clouded and the clouds were kind of pinkish…."

Sakura glanced over her shoulder, annoyed by the chatter. She toyed with the idea of pushing him into the snow and running back on her own to report the sad loss of a valued member of Team Seven.

"So when I noticed the thick clouds, I thought I'd stay out and watch for snow storm signs!" he sounded genuinely proud of his plan, despite all its holes.

"Naruto…did you know Kakashi-sensei arranged to have climate-analysis reports to this area analyzed for weeks before the mission?"

"But you never know!"

"So you really believe that, after weeks of having the winds blow any possible storms away from this mountain range, we're going to have one pop out of thin air?" She raised an eyebrow form emphasis

"…"

"Figures." She continued leading the way, Naruto trailing behind her in unusual silence.

Hmm. Naruto in silence. Had she shot him down too violently this time around?

"Sakura-chan?"

"What?"

"That hypohernia thing…it sounds kinda familiar, I think Iruka-sensei said a few things about it. It can be fatal, can it?"

"Yeah."

"So you saved my life?"

"Uh…I guess. Don't get any ideas." Kakashi had told them he'd be dragging Naruto back himself if he didn't return within the next ten minutes, and it wasn't like he'd get anything worse than a cold before he was found. Hypothermia of that degree didn't kill instantly or anything…and for all his noisy, exasperating self, she didn't hate him enough to let him get hurt. Sort of like a vexing little brother that she wanted out of her sight all the time, but who she'd watch over whenever he fell ill.

Naruto picked up his pace, taking the lead, and stopped in front of her, smiling a different kind of smile. It wasn't his usual wide, proud grin, or the goofy grin he tried to soften glares with: it was a gentler, more emotive smile that made his eyes crinkle only slightly.

"Thanks."

"Huh?"

"For saving me."

"Whatever. Just don't do things that result in you needing a rescue again." He nodded, still smiling, and let her lead him.

She blinked away the snowflakes that had caught on her eyelashes. By then they'd melted into drops of water, and she thought idly of how she'd sometimes catch sight of a rainbow of light when she stared into the rain.

Maybe it was the cold, or maybe it was the fact that she'd acknowledged not hating him as much as she usually told him she did, but Sakura was compelled to steal one or two glances of him as they returned.

It was that smile, she realized, it was intriguing her. She hadn't seen that smile before. As a matter of fact, she hadn't realized that Naruto had an expression that made him look like something more presentable than the wide-mouthed tree frog she usually believed him.

Oh, good grief, did this mean something?

She'd been paying the knucklehead more attention that he deserved ever since the tea-reading incident on their way back to Konoha from Wave. If she went on like this, she'd probably get caught by someone. What if Ino saw her and began teasing her about it? Worse, what if Sasuke looked her way whilst she was trying to puzzle Naruto out and decided her taste was definitely sub-par?

She wasn't going to keep wasting brainpower on something so silly. There were a hundred non-Naruto related whirlpool references to be seen in her life, and she'd promised herself she wouldn't make so much of a fuss over a mere fortune telling anyway. Really, if she went on like this she'd get caught in superstitions and then what? Superstitious ninja were rare and plenty laughed at.

Though, she had to admit, his smile did make him look just a little less ugly.


End file.
